The exits are hampering efforts to boost London’s cachet as a global financial nexus and a premier listing venue. The government has been working especially hard to court startups and tech companies, doling out tax breaks and easing the path to public markets. But since the Brexit vote in 2016, the UK has been plagued by slowing IPO activity, high-profile flops and political turmoil.
A rise in companies fleeing the UK stock market is another blow to London’s status as Europe’s top financial centre, adding to the gloom around a lack of initial public offerings.
US-based tech investor Allied Minds Plc said Wednesday it wants to delist from the London Stock Exchange, blaming its exit on the “prohibitively high” cost of maintaining a premium listing. Mining giant BHP Group earlier this year scrapped its top-tier quotation in the UK in favour of a primary listing in Australia, giving up its place in Britain’s blue-chip FTSE 100 index.
